Altham St James Church of England Primary School, Accrington
Data last updated 11 Sept 2026
Location
Estimated admission likelihood based on school density and oversubscription data
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 6 months agoReport card - no overall grade (new Ofsted framework from Sep 2024)
Ofsted Insights
What This School Does Well
This school creates a calm, happy environment where every child feels valued and supported to succeed. Staff have excellent relationships with pupils and families, quickly identifying and addressing individual needs. Pupils develop a genuine love of learning and achieve particularly well in writing and mathematics, with strong support for those with additional needs.
Key Strengths
- Exceptional attendance and behaviour - pupils rarely miss school and behave impeccably with staff using highly effective strategies when needed
- Strong achievement in writing and mathematics, with disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND achieving well from their starting points
- Ambitious, well-taught curriculum from early years to Year 6 that helps pupils become fluent readers and confident learners
- Excellent safeguarding culture where leaders fulfil their responsibilities and pupils feel safe
- High-quality relationships between staff and pupils, with older pupils acting as superb role models for younger ones
Areas for Improvement
- In a small number of subjects, the most important knowledge pupils need has not been identified precisely enough, leading to some misconceptions
- Leadership records about school work sometimes have gaps, making it harder for governors to hold leaders accountable
- Some pupils are less secure in their understanding where important concepts have not been defined carefully enough
Safeguarding
Safeguarding standards are met - leaders have established an open culture where safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed.
Extracurricular Activities
guitar lessons, cooking club, author visits, visitors sharing local history
Altham St James Church of England Primary School is a strong school where pupils achieve well across the curriculum, particularly in writing and mathematics. The school has established a positive culture with excellent attendance, behaviour, and safeguarding.
At a Glance
7.1%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2025/26KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has remained stable at around 73%. Maths has remained stable at around 82%. Writing has improved from 91% to 100%.
Class Sizes
20.3
Avg class size
4
Total classes
2024/25 academic year
Getting There
Bus Stops
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
133%
Over capacity
84 pupils
63 capacity
21 places over capacity
Area Demand Pressure - Accrington
Based on MHCLG housing supply data for Accrington
Admissions Demand - Lancashire
Places available
15,664
Applications
12,136
Got 1st preference
93.0%
Got preferred school
98.8%
Primary admissions across Lancashire (2025/26)
Inspection History(8)
House Prices
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SEN Provision
How many pupils have special educational needs, what types of support the school provides, and how it compares to similar schools.
Pupil Demographics
The school's pupil mix - ethnicity breakdown, free school meals eligibility, and English as an additional language. Useful context when evaluating school fit.
Teachers & Staff
Teacher qualification rates, pupil-to-teacher ratio, staff turnover, and salary data. Shows how well-resourced and stable the school's workforce is.
School Funding
Annual funding per pupil, total budget, pupil premium grants, and how the school's resources compare to similar schools nationally.
Pupil Absence2024/25
3.05453%
Overall absence
1.49254%
Persistent absence
67
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
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